Theft is non-violent larceny. The act of taxation involves implicit [threat of] physical force by the government agents (of whatever flavour), so it is not theft in my book, it counts as "robbery with violence" according to the definition in the common law, or indeed the 1968 definition under English law.

Theft is non-violent larceny. The act of taxation involves implicit [threat of] physical force by the government agents (of whatever flavour), so it is not theft in my book, it counts as "robbery with violence" according to the definition in the common law, or indeed the 1968 definition under English law.

Now, if the central bank destroys any value as a speculative investment, then the exchange rate may drop, but it will only ever go as low as its utility value. This floor is some function of the amount of wealth that needs to be exchanged, and the number of 'circulating' coins.

Of course at that point it doesn't matter how good of a job was done destroying BTC as an investment. They will be so cheap that people are bound to gamble. It may be that billions were lost last time around, but im sure that millions were made. Human psychology is such that there are always going to be people that want to take a shot at that.

See, this thing that 'the exchange rate may drop', is key. For example. If I were a business accepting payment in Bitcoin today for example. At some point, I may have received a $1500 order, paid for in Bitcoin, so ~ 10 Btc. Now however, that I need to turn my Bitcoin into money, that 10 Btc is only worth $1150. My profit on the order was only $250, so I am working to be down $100! This is a fkn crazy way to conduct business, and simply not viable. If I am prepared to put up with this kind of risk in the running of the business which provides my daily bread, I may as well just sell up, go down the casino, and put everything on red!

With sort of volatility we are seeing in Bitcoin, it is strangling real world transactions on the way up, but will destroy the real Bitcoin economy on the down. Yes, there will always be people looking to buy back in, and the market places that rely upon its use will also seek to rearrange themselves after the dust settles, but as mindtomatter describes, in this manner, Bitcoin can be held in its place as a fringe asset, popular with high risk tolerant speculators, and online drug customers. It will bring a few people exceedingly large profits, but leave the majority with a disgusting taste in their mouths.

Thats the purpose of using someone like bitpay, you have the option to do instant conversion to fiat at the point the buyer pays, so if you want zero exchange risk, that's the one for you.

The risk remains for the buyer, but I think the buyer (one hopes) is well aware of the risks of holding bitcoin!

http://haschinabannedbitcoin.com"A purely peer-to-peer version of electronic cash would allow online payments to be sent directly from one party to another without going through a financial institution" - Satoshi Nakamoto

So, OP tell us the truth. As of today 2013-04-05 BTC1 = $140. Did the things get interesting for you?

Yes, I'm actually considering selling some to buy me a motorcycle.What I'll be selling is less than my original investment but close to it, and I will consider myself at break even point after that, with my remaining bitcoins staying as they are, that is, bitcoins.If the price goes up more, great and if it goes down, I don't care because I didn't lose money.I'm not an early adopter, but I was lucky I discovered bitcoins last year when the price was around $7.5ish and I entered the market at $8 so, yeah, I'd say things are more than interesting at current prices..

hoho! Nice! I got in a bit late, but way before all this bitcoin rush. Also, you can buy a motorcycle right in bitcoins too. The guy who sold porsche for bitcoins, still has motorcycle for sale.This is my dream to buy everything right in bitcoins and just don't bother with fiat

hoho! Nice! I got in a bit late, but way before all this bitcoin rush. Also, you can buy a motorcycle right in bitcoins too. The guy who sold porsche for bitcoins, still has motorcycle for sale.This is my dream to buy everything right in bitcoins and just don't bother with fiat

I have fiat for the bike, but when I make offers, I always specify that I can pay with bitcoins if they want to.

Yes, basically, I will be able to pay my mortgage fully with my initial investment in bitcoin $8k That's how interesting things will get once we past $200

And this is why the rich will get richer, and the poor get poorer. Because all of us poor folk are doing responsible things like paying off loans, losing our investment in BTC while selling it to those with millions.

Yes, basically, I will be able to pay my mortgage fully with my initial investment in bitcoin $8k That's how interesting things will get once we past $200

And this is why the rich will get richer, and the poor get poorer. Because all of us poor folk are doing responsible things like paying off loans, losing our investment in BTC while selling it to those with millions.

hahaha yeah... but wait a minute. the fact that I will be ableto pay off my mortgage doesn't mean that I will actually do it.Why would I sell my BTC investment with insane returns to pay off a 4.5% APR loan? I'll keep my BTC for now... but eventually I will reduce my BTC investment in half.

Yes, basically, I will be able to pay my mortgage fully with my initial investment in bitcoin $8k That's how interesting things will get once we past $200

And this is why the rich will get richer, and the poor get poorer. Because all of us poor folk are doing responsible things like paying off loans, losing our investment in BTC while selling it to those with millions.

hahaha yeah... but wait a minute. the fact that I will be ableto pay off my mortgage doesn't mean that I will actually do it.Why would I sell my BTC investment with insane returns to pay off a 4.5% APR loan? I'll keep my BTC for now... but eventually I will reduce my BTC investment in half.

Considering how excited was the OP during the run up to $266 and how calm and cautious he became after the April crash and the subsequent run up to $1000, id bet he sold most of his coins during the bear market and before the run up to $1000.